Former Tibetan political prisoner Golog Jigme meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, on July 26, 2018 at the U.S. Department of State, in Washington, D.C. Photo: TPI

President Dr Lobsang Sangay with the Thank You India Souvenir – A Dharmachakra representing the wheel of Universal Truth, at the press conference at Press Club of India on January 18, 2018. Photo: CTA/DIIR/Tenzin Phende

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A source from Tibet said on 2 December, a nun named Choedon, aged 48, and two men named Tenzin Dharjee, aged 21, and Norbu Sangpo, aged 17, were arrested in front of the main Jokhang temple gate, in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. The three were going to offer food to relatives who were praying and prostrating in front of the Jokhang temple when they were arrested.

Ngawang Tharpa, from Sog County, currently living in Dharamshala, told The Tibet Post International that for a few days, they simply disappeared, and no one had any idea where they were. When their relatives asked police for their whereabouts, the police only replied that they had been detained in a prison in Nagchu County. Later, their relatives traveled to the prison, but were not allowed to meet them. It was not clear whether they were actually being held there, or for what reason they were arrested.

Tenzin Dharjee had already been imprisoned for three years for shouting, "Free Tibet!", but he was released after Choedon paid a large sum of money. Their relatives suspect that this arrest is related to those past events, said Tharpa.

Choedon, who usually lives in Dhamshong County, owns a restaurant. After she was arrested, the police searched everything her room, but found no suspicious evidence. Tenzin Darjee and Norbu Sangbo are brothers, and their father's name is Traro Wangchen.

According to Mr Tharpa, another Tibetan named Yeshe Jinpa, a monk from Sog Zanden Monastery, was arrested on 2 December. Yeshe is 44 years old and his father's name is Guru Sonam. He went to Lhasa to receive treatment for his chronic poor health. But suddenly, Chinese officials arrested him, and are holding him in a prison in Nagchu County. No one knows any more details of his arrest at this time, and the Chinese government has not announced the charges against him. He is not being allowed to meet with any relatives at this time.